Spokesperson for the Shiv Sena (Shinde) and ex-MLA Krishna Hedge (56) visited The Free Press Journal office on Monday for an interaction ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections 2024. He spoke freely on ongoing controversies in the state, including the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse incident and Badlapur school sexual assault case among others.
Excerpts:
Do you think the Shivaji Maharaj statue incident has affected the Mahayuti's image ahead of the polls?
No, it was a genuine mistake. I think the PWD officer who had identified the defects in the statute should have carried out the repairs himself instead of writing to the Indian Navy. But, yesterday was a black day for the politics of not only Maharashtra but the rest of India when a former chief minister (Uddhav Thackeray) hit photos of CM Eknath Shinde and his deputies Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar with a chappal during the ‘Jode Mara andolan' organised by MVA on Sunday. Uddhav Thackeray hit Chappal on Eknath Shinde’s poster). It is unfortunate that the son of Bal Thackeray, whose memory is cherished by the people of Maharashtra, did this.
Who gave the contract to erect the Shivaji Maharaj statue at Rajkot Fort? Was it the Indian Navy or PWD?
Contrary to all the information floating around that some, Rs 3,700 crores or Rs 38 crores were given to the Indian Navy, the amount spent on the statue was only Rs 2.36 crore. Although the work order was given by the PWD, the structural person said that the height of the statue had to be restricted to 6 feet as per specifications. I do not have the documents to say how the statue was erected 35 feet tall. The important things to note is that no one committed the mistake deliberately. In any case, the government has formed two technical committees to identify the cause of the collapse. The MVA has politicized the incident for its benefit.
In fact, a ‘Jode Mara’ Andolan should have been held in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh where there have been incidents of the bulldozing of statues of Shivaji Maharaj and vanton damage. But Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar did not utter a word about these incidents.
Chhatrapati Shivaji is not limited to Maharashtra. He is like a god for the entire country, he has fought for Hindutva. Jawaharlal Nehru had in his book ‘Discovery of India’ called Shivaji Maharaj a dacoit. In Congress-led states Shivaji Maharaj’s statues have been uprooted. Will the Shiv Sena (UBT), which is an ally of the Congress, apologize to the people of Maharashtra?
Prime Minister Modi, CM Shinde, and both his deputies Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar have apologized to the people of Maharashtra.
In the political blame game over the Shivaji Maharaj statue collapse, isn’t it unfortunate that the Indian Navy has been blamed?
No politician has blamed the Navy. It must have been a miscommunication. In no way our government will blame the Navy. We are proud nationalists and we would never blame our security forces.
The MVA also protested against the rising sexual abuse cases in the state. What is your say on the recent Badlapur school sexual assault case?
The Badlapur incident, where two children were sexually attacked was a very unfortunate one. But, the entire episode was politicized to another level. The police report says that the people were called in buses during the protest to stop trains for seven to eight hours. The government has taken appropriate steps and strict actions in the case. We have put an administrator on the school, suspended the board of trustees, suspended four policemen, filed an FIR, and put POCSO charges on the culprit. The protest organized by MVA was to tarnish our image. The protestors had Ladki Bahin posters and I doubt what percentage of the crowd were genuinely protesting against the Badlapur incident. The matter was politicized.
Has the seat-sharing formula for the Maharashtra state elections finalised. Last night Maha Yuti leaders had a marathon meeting in Nagpur?
In my opinion, BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP will get their existing seats. For the
remaining 80 odd seats, there will be a formula decided for appropriate seat sharing as BJP has comparatively more seats and our other alliance partners like RPI (A) will be accommodated honorably. We will go to the people with winnable combinations.
How would you contest polls as an alliance when there is so much in-fighting within the Maha Yuti? Your own leader Tanaji Sawant says he feels like vomiting at meetings sitting next to Ajit Pawar?
Tanaji Sawant is a senior leader and he should have not spoken in that manner. But he is not the ultimate leader of the party. The CM has already spoken with him on this issue.
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What are your learnings from the Lok Sabha elections?
In the Lok Sabha polls there was a delay in announcing candidates. That
mistake will not be repeated. Most of the candidates know who is getting tickets and have already started working in their areas.
There are talks that Devendra Fadnavis would be sent to Delhi. Does it affect your poll strategy?
I think, Fadnavis prefers to stay in Maharashtra. He is a leader who knows
every ward and block of Maharashtra. We do not know if the BJP will send him to Delhi, but Fadnavis has pan-India reach. Whether he is in Delhi or Maharashtra, he is an asset to our alliance.
